Comment 36662

By A Smith (anonymous) | Posted December 29, 2009 at 18:46:39

Really? >> Poor People, the Elderly living on fixed incomes as well as those disabled folks living off assistance DO NOT SPEND MONEY!

All the more reason to move towards a progressive property tax system. For example, if the first 50k of property value was exempted from property taxes, the effective tax rate of most homes downtown would be cut in half, saving approx $795/year. Not only that, but the effective tax rate on downtown homes would move from 1.59%, above average for the GTA, to around 0.795%, the lowest tax rate in the GTA.

In effect, by introducing a progressive tax rate, the city would reduce the wide variation in home values we see across this city. The goal of progressive tax rates is to smooth out income and wealth disparities and all the evidence suggests it accomplishes this task very well.

Currently, the property tax system we have is not only not progressive, it's actually regressive, where the richest parts of the city pay the lowest tax rate. It's the equivalent of having income tax brackets that move lower as income goes up. In fact, one could make an argument that poverty in Hamilton has increased ever since this regressive tax system was first put in place.

Another positive about a progressive tax system is that while it decreases income disparities, it also evens out tax collections. When tax rates are higher on the top earners and lower on the lower income earners, the percentage of taxes paid by the lowest income group actually goes up, while the highest income group sees their tax burden decrease. Therefore, not only does a progressive tax system make incomes more equitable, it also makes tax burdens more equitable.

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